Former footballer Sol Bamba d!es at 39 after falling ill

Former Cardiff City captain and Ivorian defender Sol Bamba has d!ed at the age of 39.

The ex-Ivory Coast international, who also played for Leicester City, Leeds United and Middlesbrough, fell ill ahead of a match in Turkey on Friday and was taken to hospital. 

Turkish top-flight side Adanaspor, who Bamba had been the head coach of since the summer, confirmed the news of his passing on Saturday evening.

In a statement, Adanaspor said: “Our Technical Director Souleymane Bamba, who fell ill before the Manisa Football Club match played yesterday, was taken to Manisa Celal Bayar University Hospital and unfortunately lost his battle for life there. Our condolences to his family and our community.”

In January 2021, he was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Four months later he announced that he was cancer-free. He reunited with Warnock at Middlesbrough later that year, spending the next 18 months in the northeast.

After retiring, Bamba focussed on his coaching career and returned to Cardiff as assistant manager to Sabri Lamouchi in 2023. Over the summer, he joined Turkish side Adanaspor, who finished 14th in the Super Lig last season.